Rhode Island Route 99 - History

History

The origins of Route 99 date back to 1959, when the Rhode Island Department of Public Works (RIDPW) began planning studies for a freeway linking I-95 in Pawtucket with the city of Woonsocket. The freeway was planned in addition to Route 146, the Louisquisset Expressway, to serve the cities and towns of northern Providence County. In 1964, $535,000 (1964 USD) was allocated for further planning studies, but the proposed freeway was ultimately dropped by RIDPW. In 1968, plans for a freeway were revived when the Massachusetts Department of Public Works proposed the construction of a "Woonsocket Connector" linking Woonsocket with Bellingham, Massachusetts and I-495 on a route similar to that of Massachusetts Route 126.

In 1971, RIDOT again began studies on a new freeway to Woonsocket, this time to connect the city's developing industrial parks to Route 146, I-295, and the rest of the Providence metropolitan area. Four different alignments were proposed for the new route, each beginning near the intersection of Route 146 and I-295 and ending near Downtown Woonsocket. The first proposal began the freeway at the intersection of Route 146 and Route 104 in North Smithfield, north of I-295. The freeway would have taken a northeast route to the downtown area. The second proposal began the freeway near the intersection of Route 146 and Route 146A in North Smithfield; this route would have also taken a northeastern route to the border between Woonsocket and the town of Cumberland. The third proposal called for a similar route to the Cumberland border, but had the freeway beginning at the intersection of Route 146 and Sayles Hill Road in the North Smithfield business district. Finally, the fourth alignment called for the freeway to begin just north of the Route 146 and I-295 interchange in Lincoln, with a northern route heading to either Downtown Woonsocket or the Cumberland–Woonsocket border. RIDOT eventually constructed the fourth alignment, with the freeway beginning north of the I-295 interchange and proceeding north to the border between Woonsocket and Cumberland. The route was assigned the number "Route 325" by RIDOT.

RIDOT conducted further planning and environmental studies in the 1970s, proposing to construct the four-lane freeway with a dual carriageway and a 65-foot (20 m) landscaped median. The freeway would be constructed over a 400-foot (122 m) right-of-way, running through mostly undeveloped land in the Blackstone River Valley. RIDOT planned to construct the highway first as a two-lane freeway to be upgraded at a later date.

Further environmental studies in the late 1980s altered the plans for the construction of the Woonsocket Industrial Highway; after studies indicated that the freeway, as originally planned, would interfere with the water supply for the city of Woonsocket, RIDOT revised the proposal, removing the large median and reducing the right-of-way. The freeway was instead planned with a 150-foot (46 m) right-of-way and concrete barriers to separate the opposing traffic lanes. The plan to open the highway as a two-lane freeway was also abandoned; instead, all four lanes would be constructed at one time. In the 1980s, the planned Route 325 was also renumbered to Route 99. Construction on Route 99 began in 1987. The project, which included the construction of a four-lane bridge over the Providence and Worcester Railroad and the Blackstone River and new collector/distributor roads on Route 146 between I-295 and Route 99, was completed in 1993.